EU Kids Act: https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/library/proposal-eu-kids-act-eu-keeping-internet-digital-spaces-accountable-and-trustworthy
This year's State of the Union address by the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, focused on three topics related to the digital policy - AI, social media use for minors, and briefly, addictive design and the upcoming Digital Fairness Act.
The French Constitutional Council has blocked the law prohibiting minors under 15 from using social media and digital services; however, the needle may move in Brussels this fall if the EU member states agree on EU-wide rules that may trump the local law.
As global policymakers rush to regulate online child safety, the focus remains on platform accountability, design, and age-verification solutions. Yet major gaps persist: technical bypasses, data privacy risks, and the missing element of shared parental responsibility.
Eurobarometer stats challenge political alarmism over teen social media use: 2/3 don't feel stressed, sad, or excluded; 55% don't compare themselves to others; and 75% haven't encountered problematic content like hate speech online.
While political agreement on online age verification has not been reached, the EU is now focusing on the technical implementation layer instead. This approach could backfire from both a technical standpoint and in terms of political optics.
The European Commission launched an age verification app this week. This is likely to serve as a start for a broader legislative initiative to legalise age-verification and subsequent restrictions on minors.
As politicians rush to impose blanket social media bans on minors, recent Council of Europe recommendations urge a smarter approach. They stress that online safety measures must protect children without sacrificing their freedom of expression or cutting off essential digital access
405 scientists from 30 countries warn teen social-media bans and age checks can backfire. In a Monday statement, they urge a moratorium until evidence is clearer, citing easy circumvention, migration to risky fringe sites, and years-long infrastructure hurdles.
As the EU reviews cybersecurity and privacy laws, VPNs may face new child-protection and age-verification rules. While uncertain, the UK’s messy experience could push the EU toward measures that risk undermining privacy.
About a year ago, the European Parliament addressed once again the now mainstream concern of the "addictiveness" of social media, claiming that features such as infinite scroll and auto-playing videos are to blame for hocking users to their apps.
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